SBIR Phase I: Collaboration, Creativity and Computational Thinking - A Cooperative Music Tinkering Game

This SBIR Phase I project will produce a digital + physical game for 6-10 year olds that fosters computational thinking practices through collaboration, listening, and tinkering through play with music. It is widely recognized that to be ready for the future, today?s students need to develop the ability to think critically, identify and solve complex problems, communicate clearly about their thinking, and work collaboratively with a team. Computational thinking (CT) is the core of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines, and is about developing a set of problem-solving heuristics, approaches and habits of mind. Collaboration and creativity, now seen as cross-cutting 21st Century skills, are also viewed as CT practices. Not all learners are motivated to learn CT through traditional programming contexts, even those designed for young learners. Moreover, there are a lack of learning environments to engage children in tinkering--trying things out and debugging--finding out why things didn?t happen as expected. And, the vast majority of existing CT learning environments for young children do not explicitly support the development of positive attitudes towards problem solving, confidence in dealing with complexity, and communicating and collaborating with others to achieve a goal. This product will enhance students? grasp of collaborative problem solving and ultimately computational thinking by engaging them in fundamental concepts that unite computing and music. The core technical innovation of this project is the design and development methodology that will lead to the creation of a transformative learning platform in its approach to learning outcomes, collaborative problem solving, and engaging game play. This multi-user, multi-device experience relies on a new approach to collaborative problem solving, leveraging multiple user inputs responsive to group tinkering and debugging. Players must employ critical listening, tinkering, debugging, and communication to identify pieces of music that are off, and work collaboratively to adjust controllers to get the music back to its original state. This game not only requires problem solving across scales (debugging smaller parts of the puzzle to get to an overall solution) but also requires collaboration and communication, something largely missing in educational games for children. This phase will focus on the build of the digital component of the game as well as conduct research and development around physical controllers. Additionally, this phase of development will research the balance of visual, audio and haptic feedback mechanisms to help players through frustrating moments, foster player communication and collaboration, and test visual design for the most effective feedback. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.